blood pressure goes up??

Rhoda, two things.  First, when I get a migraine, my BP shoots through the roof.  I never have high BP unless I have a headache.  The last time I had to go to the ED, my BP was 210/143.  As soon as my pain was under control, my BP was normal.  Also, my heartrate will usually be elevated.  Now, the ER doc has commented several times that she has had several patients who have had elevated heart rates after taking Relpax.  I also think that the Relpax might contribute to some of the increased BP (I believe that most of the abortive meds, i.e. imitrex, maxalt, relpax, etc., might have the same effect) but am not 100% sure about that.  My guess (and believe me, it is only a guess based on my personal situation) is that it is related to the pain.  I would keep a journal and see if there is a correlation between the migraine and the BP - make sure to note what  his pain level is when you are documenting the BP.

Hope this helps.

Hi Rhoda,

My migraines are linked with spikes in my blood pressure. We found the same thing - that my blood pressure would go up when my migraine started. I now take a beta blocker called nadolol and it doesn't let my blood pressure spike and my migraines are less severe than they were originally. This hasn't stopped the migraines as it does for some, but it makes it a lot better.

My face and neck often go bright red which has been my indicator that my blood pressure spiked and then my doctor and blood pressure monitors have confirmed it. This is why I don't take anything with caffeine in it because it makes my blood pump faster and will start a migraine or make it worse. I have argued with many a pharmacist about this; they always tell me that caffeine always helps migraines. It doesn't for me.

Best of luck.